Letters from the Salish Sea

Oslo. June 11, 2004 to August 5, 2017.

Oslo (a.k.a. Ch. Nike + Eden’s Seabiscuit), 13, passed away quietly on August 5, 2017 in his favorite Chesterfield leather armchair at his home in Seattle, WA. After an extended period in hospice, he was euthanized due to complications of what appeared to be canine degenerative myelopathy.

Oslo was born on June 11, 2004 in Tacoma, Washington, the offspring of Ch. Silverseas’ Northern Lights and Ch. Nike’s Stella by Starlight, both descendent of champion bloodlines. His breeder is Stephanie Horner, owner of Eden Weimaraners.

Oslo earned his American Kennel Club Champion title in September 2007. In addition to his accomplishments in the show ring, Oslo successfully completed his certification as a therapy dog through the Delta Society Pet Partners program in the fall of 2007, with his co-owner Callie Neylan as his handler (this despite having flunked his Canine Good Citizen certification the year before because he barked one too many times when Callie left the room: Oslo was very vocal!). Together with Callie, he used his therapy dog certification and canine charm to brighten people’s lives at nursing homes near D.C. and in children’s wards at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.

Anyone who met Oslo would describe him as a bold and self-confident, yet gentle, loving, affectionate dog. Like other members of his breed, he was happiest when he was with his owners and less interested in the company of other dogs. As is the nature of Weimaraners, he was incredibly athletic and very agile when retrieving a tennis ball at Marymoor, chasing deer in the hardwood forests of the mid-Atlantic, or swimming in the cold waters of Lake Washington. In his younger days, he was usually the fastest dog at Big Howe near his home on Queen Anne in Seattle, bested only by the neighborhood Salukis.

Oslo lived most of his life in Seattle, but in December 2007 he and his uncle, Mies accompanied their owner, Will Dixon, on a seven-day, cross country move to Washington, D.C. Oslo and Mies rode in the cab of the 28-foot U-Haul across the continental U.S., keeping Will company during the long, sometimes icy, drive. Callie joined them two weeks later. Oslo lived with his family in D.C. and later in Baltimore until October of 2012, when he once again made the cross-country drive as the family returned to Seattle (we all know how the airlines treat human passengers: there’s no way in hell his owners would trust them with their beloved dogs!).

While Oslo was never bred and has no offspring, he is survived by his canine relatives: uncles Mies (Orion + Eden’s Mies van der Rohe), 12, and Friedrich (Zauberhaft + Eden’s The Brother Imperial), 11 weeks, of Seattle and sister Shiva (Ch. Nike N Eden’s Ahead by a Head), 13, of Davis, California, as well as many canine cousins, aunts, and uncles. Surviving humans who knew him and will always love him are his owners Callie Neylan and Will Dixon of Seattle, WA; his breeder, Stephanie Horner of Federal Way, WA; Michaela Pomeroy and Bria Johnson of Mountlake Terrace, WA; Elisabeth and Rosa Lazzarini of Bellevue, WA; Rocky Salskov and Janet Busey of Seattle, WA; Laura Dimarco of Kennewick, WA, and Seth Pomeroy of Anchorage, Alaska.

Oslo was an incredibly fortunate dog with owners who loved him like family from the day he was born and provided him with shelter, love, good food, romps in the woods, and regular, high-quality medical care. Unfortunately, not all dogs are so lucky. Donations in Oslo’s memory can be made to the Seattle Humane Society, the Western WA Weimaraner Club or the animal welfare society of your choice.

Oslo’s ashes will be scattered over the Salish Sea from the shores of Discovery Park at a memorial service sometime later this summer or early fall.

Oslo pointing at his tennis ball from the shores of Lake Washington. Sept 4, 2006.